Nation: The Chippewas Want Their Rights

Retort some whites: "Save a fish—spear an Indian"

The whites who live on the White Earth reservation in northwestern Minnesota are increasingly apprehensive about their Indian neighbors. Says Jane Reish, co-owner of the Jolly Fisherman Resort: "We're not just a little bit nervous, we're scared to death. We seem to be caught in a time warp. All this talk about the Treaty of 1867. This is 1979!"

It is indeed 1979, but Indians all over the U.S. are on the warpath against whites—and winning. Brandishing legal briefs, the Indians are asserting their rights under old treaties and insisting on control...